A Boy, his Raccoon, and a Bittersweet Tale of Friendship

Rascal

By Sterling North, 1963. Illustrated by John Schoenherr.

Engaging, well-written, funny, a touch poetic at times, Rascal is filled with incredibly rich descriptions of a still largely agrarian and rural America , as well as many extremely entertaining episodes. This Newberry Award-winning true story is one of those, “Just one more chapter, pleeeease mom?” books.

Exploring in Wentworth’s woods one day in May, Sterling, our 11-year-old protagonist, his best friend Oscar, and huge-but-gentle St. Bernard discover a nest of baby raccoons, and manage to catch one. It’s love at first sight for Sterling and Rascal, the little raccoon kit. Oscar’s kind Norwegian mother shows the boys how to feed Rascal with warm milk through a wheat straw. 

The two become inseparable, with Rascal curling up in bed with Sterling, and learning to eat in the old highchair at the table with Sterling and his father, whom he refers to as a “casual parent"…"living much in the past”.

Casual puts it mildly, as not only does Rascal become an intimate part of the family, but Sterling also is allowed to come and go as he pleases, and follow his interests, such as building a 17-foot canoe in the middle of the living room. Rascal quickly shows his own idiosyncratic personality. He enjoys listening to the Victrola, has a keen fondness for strawberry pop, and is a “speed demon” who loves to ride going full-tilt in the basket of Sterling’s bike.

Sterling’s mother, a biologist, passed away young at age 47. A tender, sensitive woman, she taught him much about the natural world and instilled his life-long love for nature. Motherless boy and motherless raccoon form a deep and profound bond based on their mutual loves and losses.

It's an idyllic summer, full of fishing, swimming, hunting for arrowheads and agates, camping, competing in a pie-eating contest, visiting his aunt and uncle's farm, growing a victory garden, and visits from his fussy-but-loving older sisters.

No honeymoon lasts forever, and as Rascal gets bigger, he gets into bigger mischief. After discovering sweet corn, he begins raiding the neighbor’s gardens—and then hen houses. Neighbors threaten to shoot the masked bandit if Sterling doesn’t do something. First, he puts him on a leash, and finally has to build him a cage. Nearly full-grown, raccoon—and boy—are miserable. In one of those painful, turning points of growing up, Sterling has to make a tough decision. So one evening, boy and pet take a canoe ride, where, chirring to a female, Rascal returns to the forest and thus nature continues her cycles. 

Making the summer all the more bittersweet, it’s one of the last summers that Sterling is healthy and roaming free, for several years later he is stricken with polio, and confined to a wheelchair.

Rascal takes place against the backdrop of WWI, where Sterling’s brother is fighting on the front in France; the transition from horses to automobiles; the Spanish influenza pandemic;armistice day; and  a time when kids could ramble the countryside and play free outdoors, yet were expected to pitch in and work hard when the need arose.

Rascal is not only a fascinating story, but an authentic and natural way to learn about early 20th century history through true life events. This is a great book for homeschoolers, and those using the Charlotte Mason method. Many kid’s books seem to be written for girl’s interests, but this is definitely one boys will really enjoy also.

Rascal is widely available as an inexpensive paperback, or at your local library.